On Friday night, May,
25, 2013, I saw written out in a dream in red, “Carolyn youare contrite”.

On awakening, I
wasn’t for sure if I was being admonished or affirmed.

Since the first of
this year, I have felt a “shift” in my life.When this happens, I press in to the Lord in prayer to “catch-up with
the changes”; “walk in-sync with the Spirit”; “walk circumspect” with the changes; and above
all praise the Lord for His goodness and his wonderful works.

“The heart is deceitful above all things, and
desperately wicked; who can know it?”(Jer. 17:9)

It is my nature (not
to sound super-spiritual) to check myself out with the Lord as to motives,
priorities, ministry accountability and integrity in my approach to the
Holiness of the Lord, and His counsel.This is my posture before His throne of Grace and Mercy and His Grace of
Goodness. I always pray to be “counted worthyof my calling and fulfill all the good pleasure of his goodness, and
the work of faith with power.”All
of this is a simple fact, not virtue on my part, but Grace given to me by the
Lord in His service.If we fall short, “we shall also be cut off” (Rom.
11:27).

In this Great Grace,
we all walk free of condemnation and shame.Our sins are not only forgiven, but forgotten.We have been set free from the law of sin and
death.We have been delivered, signed
and sealed into eternal peace of eternal life with Jesus. Theology defines this “state of being” as
absolution by Faith.I define it as my
Faith is a Fact.

Romans 8:1-2:“There
is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk
not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from
the law of sin and death.”

As I began to pull up
the scriptures on “contrite”, to my delight, I discovered that the message in
my dream was not admonishing me for being overly “bent-over” before the Lord,
but was an affirmation.

Whew!!! Wipe the sweat off my brow!!!

I must have done something right!!

Every once in a while
we get something right and we don’t even know what we have done.

Psa. 51:17:“The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a
contrite heart, O God you will not despise.”

Psa. 34:18:“The
Lord is near unto them that are of a broken heart; and saves such as be of a
contrite spirit.”

What is a contrite
heart?

It is certainly not walking in false humility,
with the attitude of, “look at me how repentant and spiritual I am”.That is a disgusting, religious spirit and is
a stench before the Lord.Self-flagellation
is the spirit of “all of our
righteousness is as filthyrags”.It is
not walking around in sack, cloth and ashes.

If one studies
“contrition”, then we can sink into centuries of theological debates with Godly
men and women splitting hairs over their doctrines (gasp).I do not study and explore theological
doctrines, because I am taught by the Holy Spirit and have found my way to the
heart of the father through Faith.

The Catholic Church
teaches that perfect contrition has for its motive, The Love of God.I like that!

Isaiah 57:15: “For thus says the high and lofty One that
inhabits eternity, whose name is
Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite
and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart
of the contrite ones.”

‘TO REVIVE THE HEART
OF THE CONTRITE”!!!Now that has a ring
to it!!!!

To quote an old
gospel song, “I get a witness”.

Before exploring
Isaiah 57, I think we should consider the antonym for “contrite” which is
remorseless, unapologetic, and unrepentant.

Isaiah 56: 9-12 and
Isaiah 57 is an oracle against national leaders.The national leaders were for the most part
lazy, self-seeking and avaricious.Many
of the common people were guilty of apostasy and idolatry.

The flock of Judah can
freely be raided because the prophets who ought to be giving warning are blind
and mute.The politicians are the
drunken leaders.They are greedy dogs
(strong of soul; strong of appetite) which can never have enough.They all look to their own way, every one for
his gain.Come ye, say they, I will
fetch wine, and we will fill ourselves (our own lusts) with strong drink and
tomorrow shall be as this day.

God promises his help
to the humble and penitent to the exclusion of the wicked.God complained about the general apathy
toward the fate of the righteous.

As this is Memorial
Day Weekend, I want to say that it is my belief that the killing of the four
Americans in Benghazi
will become a perpetual historical marker of the failure of political leaders
to fulfill their call to duty.Because
of the failure of these blind politicians and drunken leaders, righteous and
honorable men perished and do perish, while none lay it to heart.

Isa. 57:1:“The righteous perish, and no may lays it to heart; and
merciful men are taken away, none consider that the righteous is taken away
from the evil to come.”

Just as the people
yielded to the evil influences of such leaders, so are the people in the United States
guilty for yielding to the sons of the sorceress.“Draw near here, you sonsof the sorceress, the seed of the adulterer and
the prostitute.Against whom do you
sport yourselves? Against whom make you a wide mouth, and draw out the tongue?
Are you not children of transgression, a seed of falsehood (lying spirits).Enflaming (burning with lust)yourselves with
idols under every green tree, slaying the children(abortion,sex trafficking, pedophiles) in the valleys under
the clefts of the rocks”

(Vs. 6) The smooth stones represent that which is slippery
and deceptive.

(Vs. 7) “Upon a lofty and high mountain (the kingdom of
self and pride).

(Vs. 8) “Behind the doors also and the posts (things done in secret and hiding) haveyou set up your remembrance; for you have uncovered yourself
to another (Islam) than Me, and have gone up; you have enlarged your bed, and made a
covenant withthem
(Islam); you
loved their bed where you saw it.(You made your bed with them).

(Vs.9-11) “You went to the king with ointment, and did increase your
perfumes, and did send your messengers far off, and did debase yourself even to
hell.You are wearied in the greatness
of your way; yet said you not, there is no hope; you have found the life of
your hand; therefore you were not grieved.Of whom have you been afraid or feared, that you have lied, and have not
remembered Me.,
nor laid it to your heart? Have not I held My peace even of old, and you fear
Me not?

Vs. 12-13: “I will declare your righteousness, and your works; for they
shall not profit you.When you cry, let
your companies deliver you; but the wind shall carry them all away, vanity
shall take them; but he that puts his trust in Me shall possess the land, and
shall inherit My holy mountain”.

All of God’s promises
are of no avail apart from forsaking evil ways and practicing acts of
righteousness.

Sin has been exalted
and manifest, and judgment is to be conspicuous and complete.

57: 15:“For thus says the high and lofty One that inhabits eternity,
whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and Holy place, with him also that is
of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to
revive the heart of the contrite ones.”

The devout can dwell with their God, since His eternal
dwelling is not only in heaven above, but also in lowly hearts whose only
motive for contrition is the Love of God.

David found this grace of a “contrite heart”.In Psalm 51 David’s first cry was for pardon,
then purity, for cleansing of heart, and renewal of Spirit.Then the prayer goes on to seek for the
things which follow such cleansing; maintenance of fellowship, and
consciousness of the joy of the Lord. Looking on in hope, the song anticipates the
service of thanksgiving and praise which will issue from such pardon and
purity.Saul was neither a murderer nor
adulterer; yet David was a man after God’s heart, because he knew how to
repent.

Romans 2:4: “Do you despise the riches of his goodness and forbearance and
longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?”

Man and God dwell
together in His high and Holy place because of the blood sacrifice of
Jesus.Without that mediator, we would
all be dead in our trespasses and sin.Like those who are arrogant, unrepentant, remorseless, and unapologetic
described in Isaiah 57, we would debase ourselves even to Hell.

Our spirits soar into
that high and Holy place because we are free from condemnation.When we realize like David, that we are
exalted with Him and will be like Jesus in his high and holy place, we can’t
help but be humbled and broken before Him, with unspeakable joy of His great
goodness.

That my friends is my conclusion as to the
place of grace of that “state of being ---contrite”.

During my "quest" to discover what the Lord was speaking to me concerning being "contrite", I discovered on the internet a sermon by Bro. Ed ducote, A Contrite Heart, www.thecontriteheart.org. I did not quote from Bro. Ed, but read and studied his sermon several times. I was greatly blessed by Bro. Ed's contrite heart and testimony.